“India produces very small number of PhDs in the sector of engineering and technology as compared to China or US and there hasn’t been a scaling up in doctoral research,” observed Dr. Anil Kakodkar, the Department of Atomic Energy Homi Bhabha Chair professor at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre in Mumbai.

The observation came while Dr. Kakodkar was delivering a lecture on “Translating Scientific Research for National Development” during the Brahm Prakash Memorial Lecture at the Indian Institute of Science on Tuesday.

Talking about domains like education, research, technology and commercial deployment, Kakodkar said these need to be seen as a continuum and not silos. “Our university campuses need considerable transformation. The infrastructure should cover innovative ecosystem with relation to society and industry. The faculty should orient their teaching and research to address some of the major challenges before the society,” he added.

“The faculty strength should be scaled up to support research programs without diluting the quality. Moreover, more number of PhD students should be accommodated in the program,” he said.